June 25, 2006: Various

George Bush never lied about Weapons of Mass Destruction. Liberals lied

By now much of the nation has finally heard the truth; George Bush never lied about weapons of mass destruction. By now most of America is realizing that the President who has been pummeled mercilessly on the fact that such weapons were missing, is deserving of public apologies from every Ted, Dick, and Harry the Senate can cough up.

The lying leftists, who will get all of us killed if we don't remain vigilant, were very slow to respond.

If you have been living under a rock here's the short measure of it.

Computer expert says he tried to warn British police about London bombers Jennifer Quinn, June 24, 06, CNEWS

LONDON (AP) - A man who used his computer skills to help encrypt e-mails and produce anti-western DVDs for radical Muslims said he tried to warn British police about two of the men responsible for the July terrorist attack in London, a newspaper reported Saturday.

Martin Gilbertson, a former biker and rock band roadie, said he met Mohammed Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer at a party held to celebrate the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks against the United States, the Guardian newspaper said. The party was in Beeston, West Yorkshire, some 300 kilometres north of London.

Gilbertson, who the newspaper said was a former Hell's Angel and roadie for the band Motorhead, said he was working as a computer technician for people who were involved in a local Islamic bookshop and youth centre, and helped produce anti-western DVDs. [....]

Command Performance: at the "the prestigious summit" -- AIDS

Has anyone else noticed that, when the "activists" are involved and expect you, you are considered to be against them if you don't attend? After 20+ years, frankly, we know more about how AIDS is transmitted, who are most likely to be still contracting it, and how to prevent it, so, if one gets it today, maybe the activities that are most risky could be explored. Maybe the activists would like to take on that one? Even the contamination of Canada's blood supply was linked to the political correctness about the connection between homosexual activity, AIDS, and blood. Unspoken, in this whole thing is that not to attend one of these command performances is seen as homophobic ... though of course, we are told, AIDS is "everyone's" disease. No, it isn't. I am not at all worried about AIDS. Perhaps the activists could explore why ......



Maybe PM Harper has other work to do?

Harper won't attend global AIDS summit: report -- "20,000 scientists, journalists, community leaders, AIDS activists and people who are living with the disease" -- There would be only one reason for a leader to attend; that is to give $$$ -- U.S. president Bill Clinton and Microsoft chairman Bill Gates are planning to attend. CTV.ca, June 23, 06

Will ex-Pres. Bill Clinton, who loves talkfests, hand out cigars? Microsoft's Bill Gates, $$$?



Polls -- unscientific but ...

CTV.ca Poll -- 19343 people

Should the age of sexual consent be raised to 16?
Yes: 16477 or 85 %
No: 2866 or 15%

Should an extramarital affair be a factor in determining spousal support following a divorce?
15128 participants
Yes: 7487 or 49%
No: 7641 or 51%

Could we say marriage as exclusivity with one person has died? What does that do to the children?



Kyoto

Paul Vieira: Bureaucrats knew Kyoto unattainable -- Public servants waiting for right time to admit failure: documents National Post, June 20, 2006

OTTAWA - The Conservative government's much-criticized admission that Canada cannot meet its requirements under the Kyoto climate-change protocol is backed up by documents prepared for the new government by federal bureaucrats.

The documents, obtained through a request made under the Access to Information Act, indicate public servants at the Natural Resources ministry had already concluded targets accepted by the previous Liberal government were unattainable, and were waiting for the right moment to admit it.

In material on climate-change policy prepared for the new Natural Resources Minister, Gary Lunn ...

No. 1 on the list was:

"Whether/when to acknowledge that Canada will be very unlikely to meet target?"

The target in reference is Canada's Kyoto commitment -- ....

A number of pages and sections of the briefing material were blacked out or omitted as department officials cited numerous confidentiality concerns. For instance, three pages dealing with the issue of whether or when Canada should acknowledge its likely Kyoto failure were censored. That means the reasons why the department has identified this as the top key issue for the Minister are not available. [....]

Ex-PM Martin hid this ... did he not?



Why do I get the idea that Kyoto was as much about funding academic projects as anything?

Kyoto: Current activities of the Centre include:
www.unb.ca/enviro/kyoto.html
www.unb.ca/enviro/projects.html

[....] 20) EECOM (Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication) Environmental Awards

21) From 1994 until 2004, the Centre has been actively involved with the Premier’s Round Table on Environment and Economy. The Director of the Centre has been a Member of the Round Table and Chair of the Energy and Coastal Zone Task Groups. In this capacity she has been a member of Market Design Committee for the NB electricity market and the Bay of Fundy Stakeholders Forum.

22) International work of the Centre includes a Tier 1 CIDA project with China and Vietnam on Community Based Conservation Management and a Tier 2 project with China on Sustainable Agriculture. This later project has led to an initiative (under discussion) between the UNB Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Management and the Fujian University of Forestry and Agriculture for an articulated undergraduate program. The Centre has been involved with partners in Cuba and presented a paper in Cuba at the invitation of FOCAL.

Search: FOREM




Enough, already!

We are so very, very, very sorry Editorial, NatPost, June 23, 06

We would like to begin this editorial with a pre-emptive apology. There is a possibility that no matter how carefully written and lucidly argued the editorial is, there may still be people who disagree with our position. For that we would like to extend our sincere regrets.

It has become fashionable to apologize, and this is particularly true with respect to historical wrongs which, since they involve actions of others, long dead, and hence are free of any personal culpability, are apologies that are inherently easy to make. [....]

We need not grovel only to ethnic groups, however. What about expanding the definition to include all people who have suffered, financially or otherwise, as a result of federal government policies? Perhaps we should offer financial redress to the descendants of the tens of thousands of Canadians who lost money due to bank failures between 1867 and 1923, a period when roughly 20% of Canadian banks failed and the federal government refused to inspect banks or offer deposit insurance.

At least the Chinese who paid the bigoted tax in order to come to Canada have something to show for it. They were able to buy a better life. You wouldn't think that is something anyone would require compensation for.

Canada, land of opportunity

Chinese fugitive under house arrest in Vancouver accepts film offer for life story CanWest, June 23, 06

Lai Changxing, a Chinese fugitive and alleged smuggling kingpin, has decided to bide his time under house arrest in Vancouver by making a movie about his life. Three weeks ago, the Federal Court of Canada stopped Mr. Lai's deportation over concerns he could be tortured or executed in China. That same day, Mr. Lai, pictured, said yes to a film offer to tell his side of the story. "This movie has nothing to do with the [deportation appeals]. It begins when I was very little, how I came to do business and how my business grew so big," he said. [....]

Relevant to another post: June 25, 2006: Cross Pollination

Stewart Bell: Spies targeting government, CSIS report says June 23, 06, NatPost

[....] Spies are targeting federal departments and companies involved in the aerospace, biotechnology, chemical, communications, nuclear, mining, IT, oil and gas industries, it says.

[...] attempting to infiltrate key Canadian government departments in their quest for intelligence ...

[....] China and Iran are believed to have among the most active spy programs in Canada. Foreign Minister Peter MacKay said in April he wanted to crack down on Chinese industrial espionage because of its impact on the economy.

[...] use specialized knowledge and cutting-edge technology to acquire intelligence.
"In other instances, countries enlist or coerce the co-operation of their citizens who are visiting Canada, such as students and scientists, exchange personnel, members of delegations, employees of state-owned corporations and business people."

Canadians may also be targeted when they travel, it says, adding that hotel rooms, restaurants, offices and telecommunications equipment can be adapted "for espionage purposes."

Spies have also been manipulating and exploiting expatriate communities in Canada for the benefit of foreign interests, the report says. Despite being warned by Canada, "certain countries" continue to do so. [....]

Adam Radwanski: When nothing is the best thing to say -- re US Ambassador to Canada Wilkins -- inoffensive NatPost, June 23, 06




Sharon Kirkey: Avoid cellphones in storms, study warns -- "during stormy weather can be fatal" -- "This rare phenomenon is a public health issue, and education is necessary to highlight the risk of using mobile phones outdoors during stormy weather to prevent future fatal consequences from lightning strike injuries related to mobile phones."


Mother and daughter accused of belonging to Ecstasy-smuggling network NatPost, June 23, 06

[....] Sharon Simon, 48, and Annie Arbic, 21, made an appearance at the Laval, Que., courthouse. Ms. Simon, a resident of the Kanesatake Mohawk community, and her daughter were among 12 people who will have their cases heard in Laval while several others who were arrested on Wednesday appeared before a judge in Sherbrooke, Que. Ms. Simon and most of the people charged in Laval face a conspiracy charge that encompasses four criminal acts; trafficking, possession of marijuana with the intent to traffic, possession of the proceeds of crime and money laundering.

More: 21 Jun 2006:

MONTREAL (CP) - RCMP allege a 48-year-old woman from the Mohawk territory of Kanesatake, near Montreal, is the leader of a drug ring that made weekly ...
ca.news.yahoo.com/s/21062006/2/ national-police-allege-48-year-old-woman-arrested-wednesday-leader.html

CBC News: Quebec raids target drug-smuggling suspects
www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/ 2006/06/21/drug-raids.html?ref=rss



Simon Eidsvik: Segregation on the seas

Phil Eidsvik is fisherman and executive director of the B.C. Fisheries Survival Coalition.

[....] Two weeks ago, in a stunning decision that is reverberating from coast to coast, the B.C. Court of Appeal reversed these precedents. In the Kapp decision, five justices unanimously ruled that unless commercial salmon fishermen prove financial loss, government-mandated racial segregation of the commercial fishery -- in this case by giving preferential access to aboriginal fishermen at the expense of everyone else -- is not discriminatory. In other words, government is free to use race to determine who can fish commercially on any given days.

What the B.C. court has effectively done is follow the separate but equal concept developed by the U.S. Supreme Court in its infamous 1896 ruling in Plessy vs. Ferguson, which endorsed segregated rail-cars for black and white Americans. After Plessy, black Americans were forced to fight segregation by contesting each inferior school, university, rest-room, park and rail-car on a case by case basis. [....]

[....] Despite their difficult history, Nguyen [first Vietnamese woman to join the B.C. fishing industry], Horne [aboriginal ... Saanich Indian Band ... "he expressed his intense frustration at trial by saying that it was "too hard" to stay tied to the dock and then listen to Musqueam fishermen brag about how much money they were making."] and Canadians of Japanese ancestry never asked for special treatment in the fishery -- just equality. Asked in court to explain why she opposed race-based commercial fisheries, Nguyen testified: "When I became a Canadian, I remember when I swear, I obey the law. I have freedom to speak. Equal rights, and everything. We wants, one fishery do for everybody the same and equal. They can have it; we can have it, too. I got the family; they got the family, too ... They fish; we sit ... We come to this country, to freedom ... We love fishing. We don't want to leave the fishing business." [....]

Peter Foster: Natives are not the victims here NatPost, June 23, 06

[....] As in the Caledonia situation, meanwhile, the natives of the KI are being manipulated and used by those with other agendas. The estimable Western Standard seems to have been the only media outlet to have reported that those contributing to the violent escalation at Caledonia include pro-Palestinian groups, the thuggish Ontario Coalition Against Poverty and CUPE Local 3903. Those stirring the pot at Big Trout Lake include the Toronto-based Wildlands League, which claims that the vast tract of Canada's boreal forest is under threat.

The KI are seeking not merely to hold up Platinex, which could threaten the tiny company's survival, but to challenge the Ontario Mining Act as unconstitutional.

[....] what Platinex is doing is exploration, which has a very low, if any, long-term environmental impact. Without the traditional and legal freedom to explore on Crown Lands, no development will take place. And that would be bad news for all northern natives.

Meanwhile, the main victim in this situation is Platinex. Even if their legal rights are confirmed, operating in Big Trout Lake may prove impossible. In that case, the company should vigorously seek damages from the KI band. Otherwise it will be established, yet again, that violence pays. [....]

The chickens have come home to roost

CTV.ca: 7 charged with conspiring to work with al Qaeda

Seven men arrested in connection with an alleged terror plot have been charged with conspiring with al Qaeda to blow up Chicago's Sears Tower and other U.S. buildings. [....]

Charges in failed terror plot

WASHINGTON (AP) — A group of young men seized in a Miami warehouse have been charged in a federal indictment with conspiring with al-Qaida to “levy war against the United States” by committing acts of violence including blowing up Chicago’s Sears Tower. [....]

Currently, connections to the lads picked up in Canada lately are being explored.





Diversion: Photos Smithsonian National Zoological Park




Via BlogHonestRreporting.ca

"Not-So-Candid Camera" Zoran Bozicevic, an associate photo editor at the National Post with combat photography experience, has a fascinating piece in today's [June 16, 2006] National Post about staged pictures and falling photojournalism standards:

"With the rise of digital photography, barriers to entry fell in the profession: Anyone could call himself a photojournalist, pick up a camera, and e-mail photos to editors around the world. The cost-cutting media increasingly relies on these cheap, sometimes unscrupulous, local stringers. In some cases, they flout professional objectivity, and take sides in the conflict they cover. In other cases, they stage pictures to keep employers happy. Or worse, they manipulate digital pictures after the fact, turning a photo into a work of fiction."

As an example, Bozicevic applies his professional eye to this AFP/Getty image from June 1:

Photograph by: Saif Dahlah, AFP, Getty Images

Bureaucrats knew Kyoto unattainable -- Public servants waiting for right time to admit failure: documents
http://
www.canada.com/nationalpost/news
/story.html?id=8284d3a7-ab61-4c79-b4a8-4e5d33e296d2



Peter Shawn Taylor: The New Feudalism: The Future of Cities -- Ontario's town-cramming urban planning blueprint is undemocratic, unfair to families and bad for the environment NatPost, June 23, 06

In the name of now-fashionable New Urbanism planning, the Ontario government last week announced dramatic new controls over where citizens of Toronto and its satellite cities will be able to live in the next 25 years. It is a deliberate strategy to curb suburban growth and force more people into downtown high-rise apartments -- thus frustrating the hopes and dreams of many young potential homebuyers across Southern Ontario.

No doubt everyone gets the government, and the urban planning, they deserve. But at least we should be honest about the terms we use. And New Urbanism really doesn't capture the imperial urges of the McGuinty government. A more accurate term for this planning doctrine would be New Feudalism.

Last Friday, David Caplan, Ontario's Minister of Public Infrastructure Renewal, unveiled the Greater Horseshoe Area Growth Plan, the final component in his government's designs for stopping the organic expansion of most cities in Southern Ontario.

[....] New Feudalism is the cure for that age-old government problem of individual choice. [....]

more




Diversion: Flowers by pugbug



Don Martin: Cabinet surprisingly good for a bunch of rookies ...Kudos to Jim Flaherty, Jim Prentice, Stockwell Day, John Baird, Jason Kenney, June 23, 06


Report finds no fault in B.C. killer's parole Jun. 23 2006, CTV.ca

A report concludes that no major errors were committed in granting day parole to a British Columbia killer who went on to take part in the murders of seven people in the province.

Robert Bruce Moyes pleaded guilty in 2002 to seven counts of first-degree murder for the strangling of a suspected police informant and his wife in 1995; and the slayings of five people in the Abbotsford area in 1996. [....]

This week, while testifying in B.C. Supreme Court against a man he described as his most loyal friend outside prison, Mr. Moyes happily admitted that he lied repeatedly to parole and corrections officials for the past 30 years.

"I know how to make the rules work for me, just like a lawyer," said the multiple murderer turned police agent turned key Crown witness, at the first-degree murder trial of Salvatore Ciancio. [....]

I have heard reports seeming to suggest that Afghani Pres. Karzai would prefer the Afghani Taliban not be killed because they are Afghans. ...... Is it opium harvest time in the area? Has he, personally, been threatened? If the Taliban return to power, Karzai would be the first to die.

Better way needed to fight war on terror -- Afghan president says AFP, June 23, 06

[....] The U.S.-led "war on terror" launched after 9/11 has largely been limited to Afghan soil but should be extended to the sources of terrorism, he told reporters in Kabul in an apparent reference to Pakistan, where the Taliban have safe haven in lawless tribal regions....we must engage strategically in disarming the terrorists by stopping their sources of money, training, equipment and motivation. .... The international community also needs to "reassess the manner in which the war on terror is conducted," he said, adding he had been in discussions with Afghanistan's partners about a "change of approach." [....]

Gerald Owen: Warlords, religious freedom and Somalia NatPost, June 23, 06

'Secular warlords" is a phrase with an uncertain future. For some weeks, the wire services and other media, when reporting on Somalia, have found this to be a convenient description for a group formed in February, the Alliance for Restoration of Peace and Counterterrorism (ARPCT). This month, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) drove the ARPCT out of Mogadishu, the city that was Somalia's capital when the country had a government.

[....] The Americans have reason to worry that rule by Islamic courts in Somalia would tolerate, or actively harbour, terrorists from elsewhere in the Muslim world -- in other words that Somalia would become like Afghanistan under the Taliban.

The rise of these courts was not a revolution against an existing power, as in Iran. There was evidently a popular demand in Mogadishu for the resolution of disputes, and for protection against ordinary crime. That led in turn to a federation of 11 courts, of various tendencies. Two of them are said to be militant, though Sufism -- a mystical rather than political strain of Islam -- is supposed to be prevalent in Somalia.

For good or ill or both, civil society in Somalia consists of clan kinships and Islamic jurisprudence -- entailing allegiances that often overlap with each other. For example, most of the Mogadishu courts are affiliated with one clan, the Hawiye, and warlords draw upon clan support. [....]

Mustn't deter the little darlings, eh?

SCOC: Day in jail enough for killer teen -- Jim Brown, June 22, 06

OTTAWA (CP) - The Supreme Court of Canada, in a judgment sure to spark controversy, has refused to boost a sentence of one day in jail for a Winnipeg teenager who beat a man to death with a billiard ball wrapped in a sock.

In a 7-0 ruling Thursday, the court said the Youth Criminal Justice Act, as currently written, doesn't allow for increasing a sentence just to send a get-tough message to the public.

[....] The legal question was whether judges have the leeway to consider so-called "general deterrence" as a factor in sentencing under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

In effect, the deterrence principle means sending a message to the public that certain serious crimes cannot be tolerated and ought to be subject to heavier sentences.

The high court ruled that can't be considered in sentencing young people. [....]

Will no-one rid of us of these cossetted SCOC justices? Get some ordinary people not blinded by perusal of their own entrails. I think a dozen ordinary Canadians have the ability to make more commonsense rulings ... the implications of which those living in their SCOC cocoon don't seem to be able to understand ... decisions that most Canadians understand are necessary.



Canadians cool to immigration, poll suggests Scott Deveau, June 22, 06, G&M

Canada's immigration policy took a big hit in public confidence in the wake of 17 arrests in southern Ontario earlier this month, a new poll suggests.

Even though all of those arrested on suspicion of terrorist activity were Canadian residents – and most of them were born in Canada – the new poll commissioned by the Association for Canadian Studies (ACS) and conducted by Léger Marketing found that for the first time more people are dissatisfied with Canada's immigration policy than support it. [....]

Canadians are waking up to the beliefs and values that come with the immigrants from certain source countries and they realize that some immigrants perpetuate the hatreds within their own communities or they import preachers who do it for them. Some groups simply do not fit in to a Western Democracy.



Does it mean anything that Canadians like me have contributed to the wonderful PBS programming, particularly the nature series, but we hate our own CBC's self-important biased reporting?

No, Canada needs an open forum for all viewpoints, not just the ones sanctioned by the fat cats in the CBC and the Bell-GlobeMedia empire.

Senate report proposes ad-free CBC -- Proposes limits on media ownership NatPost, June 20, 2006

According to sources, the report of the Senate's transport and communications committee will recommend that the Competition Act be beefed up to require an automatic review whenever a media company acquires more than a certain percentage of audience share in any market. [....]

A CanWest spokesman had no immediate comment. But last week, CanWest CEO Leonard Asper argued that the government needs to give its blessing to even greater consolidation of the media industry.

He maintained that fears about ownership concentration are unnecessary given the surge in Internet competitors, such as Google and Yahoo.

[....] In testimony before the Senate committee last year, Victor Mlodecki, vice president and general manager of Brunswick News Inc., argued that his company's dominance in the province results in economies of scale that actually produce more and better quality journalism.

"Without the benefit of scale, many of these local publications would not exist or would not be of the quality that BNI ownership has permitted,'' he contended.
However, other witnesses argued that concentration of media ownership -- particularly cross-ownership of newspapers, radio and TV -- jeopardizes freedom of the press, limiting the diversity of opinion that is vital to the health of a democracy. [....]

Senate report to propose ad-free CBC, limits on media ownership, sources say June 20, 06, Joan Bryden.

[....] The report, to be released Wednesday, will also recommend measures to prevent private media conglomerates from dominating newspaper, radio and television audiences in a single market. According to sources, the report of the Senate's transport and communications committee will recommend that the Competition Act be beefed up to require an automatic review whenever a media company acquires more than a certain percentage of audience share in any market. [....]

Brunswick News, owned by the Irving family, owns three dailies, 12 weeklies and four radio stations in New Brunswick.

Bell Globemedia, which owns CTV and The Globe and Mail, dominates about 43 per cent of the Toronto market.

Quebecor, which owns the Sun newspaper chain, dominates 47 per cent of the market in Quebec City. [....]

Jihadist video aimed at Muslim youth CBC News, Last Updated Tue, 20 Jun 2006 20:06:37 EDT posted by timwest, 6/20/2006 21:33:37

CBC News has obtained a copy of a video of one of the suspects in the Toronto bombing plot that was allegedly handed out in the parking lot of a local mosque.

Alleged bomb-plot suspects in a Brampton courtroom on June 6, 2006. (John Mantha/CBC) A Canadian convert to Islam, Muhammad Robert Heft says he was given a copy of a video by Fahim Ahmed. It is a chilling glimpse inside the jihadist mind and intended as a wake-up call to Muslim youth in Canada.

Heft says he argued with Ahmed and came to the conclusion that: "The guy's either a moron who doesn't really, or underestimates how strong people have views against Sept. 11, even in the muslim community. Or, the guy is one of those people who must think somewhere that he's got this super relationship with God." [....]

Heft's allegation that he obtained the video from Ahmed fits with a synopsis of the prosecution's case obtained by CBC News that also alleges Ahmed handed out copies of a video glorifying jihad.

Aly Hindy, imam of the Salaheddin mosque, says he knew nothing of the matter, adding that he has no control over what people handout in the parking lot.

Aly Hindy, formerly of AECL, is such a prominent Muslim that his name regularly comes up with stories of boys who attended mosque and turned bad. ... Strange that he was never told. His innocence and ignorance are appalling in a leader, wouldn't you think?



Ethanol, subways and AECL -- Three taxpayer ripoffs -- "abuse of all taxpayers to favour a few well-placed corporations and special interests" Terence Corcoran, National Post, June 20, 2006 Terence Corcoran, National Post, June 20, 06

[....] Ethanol: The ethanol boondoggle, essentially a plan to plough billions in taxpayer dollars into the fields of farmers, is now escalating as a great financial scam.

The first thing to know about ethanol is that there is no real business in ethanol. It's an industry that exists solely on the backs of taxpayers snookered by governments hooked on farm votes and green propaganda. Ethanol knows no limits in the amount of government protection, regulation and subsidy it needs to keep operating.

[....] Through an income trust, the company would be turning taxpayer dollars into personal gain, all the while claiming environmental benefits that don't exist. [....]
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) needs new subway trains. In a back-room deal cooked up by the Mayor and his council crony, Howard Moscoe, the city has decided to award the $700-million contract for 234 trains to Bombardier without competitive bids from other firms. The trains would be built at Bombardier's plant in Thunder Bay, Ont. [....]

Nuclear energy: With Ontario set to spend billions on new nuclear facilities, who should get the business? The drums are already beating for Ontario to forget about going for "the best technology at the best price" and instead throw the business to Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL).

AECL has been on the receiving end of endless streams of government funding -- billions over the decades. It still draws regular cash transfers from federal taxpayers. In an editorial yesterday, the Toronto Star urged Prime Minister Harper to step forward to announce major new backing for AECL. Ottawa, it said, should "underwrite the risk" of Ontario's next big energy gamble.

From Bombardier's trains to ethanol and AECL, taxpayers of Toronto, Ontario and across the country are paying to subsidize industries, unions and special interests that do not deserve it.

Make Ottawa accountable to taxpayers Hugh Segal, Special to the National Post, June 20, 2006

[....] The Auditor-General does great work, but it is largely retroactive. And while the Conservatives' commendable Accountability Act will improve attentiveness, it too is largely about measures after the fact. We need more real time data so Canadians can have information the media can assess and analyze and parliamentarians can discharge their expenditure control responsibly.

S-217 provides for mandatory quarterly disclosure for all government departments and Crown corporations. When combined with the new Parliamentary Budget Office, this will enhance Parliament's capacity to actually scrutinize in-year spending while remedial action is still possible. The Senate bill also calls for a management discussion and analysis as to key variances and changes from plan. Excesses in revenue would also be tracked quarterly, as opposed to appearing like magic after the fiscal year-end -- a practice that does more to bring the credibility of public accounts into disrepute.

Public servants I have consulted on this seem to feel that whatever the technical challenges of getting this right, the liberation effect of uniform disclosure rules and reporting periods would be constructive. Ministerial or peer pressure to obfuscate disclosure, dilute timeliness or "manage" the numbers would be countered by the disclosure law. The provisions of this bill would allow civil servants to do the work required and expected of them. [....]

Lately, I read that a student overburdened by the weight of student debt was caught because she was selling drugs, marijuana and lately, cocaine.

Nine arrested in debit card fraud ring -- One hundred officers bust multimillion dollar fraud ring NatPost / CP, June 20, 2006

MONTREAL -- Nine people have been arrested after 100 police officers busted a multimillion dollar debit and credit card fraud ring that involved convenience stores and small grocery stores.

[...] some 18,000 people were defrauded [....]

[....] the technology is becoming more sophisticated,

[....] with modified Interac keypads [....]

Privacy czar audits border agency NatPost, June 21, 2006

Ottawa The Canada Border Services Agency does not properly control how and what personal information of Canadians it shares with the United States and other foreign governments. And, it must change the way it does business to better track the flow of transborder information, Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart urged in her annual report to Parliament yesterday. [....]